beautifulsynergy | ♫ •||• Taking the Plunge

♫ •||• Taking the Plunge

[ She couldn't believe that they'd actually been roped into this, but here they are, at a ball. Here she is, wearing a dress.

Her mother was never going to let her hear the end of it.

If it weren't for Rapunzel's big heart they might not even be in this boat, but... even Piper found it difficult to say no to this particular side quest. A young man of no particular station wanted to win the hand of the daughter of a baron, who was hosting a ball in order to find a suitable match. What started off as simple tips and lessons to help prepare the guy for the challenges he'd face in dealing with high society (thanks largely to Cassandra and- to everyone's surprise -Piper) had somehow turned into them attending the ball AS WELL for moral support. He was convinced he wouldn't be able to do it if he had to go alone and he'd needed someone of Rapunzel's standing to vouch for him to even be permitted to attend. The baron had agreed on the sole condition that the princess herself attend (to bolster his reputation, and Piper could see why he needed it). The rest of them had been roped in as a result, if just to make sure nothing shady went down.

But now that whole situation has resolved itself and while both the new couple and Rapunzel and Eugene share their dances, the rest of them have slipped off to various areas of the estate for their own various reasons.

Cassandra kept close to keep an eye on things, Lance and Hookfoot had excused themselves to the refreshments table, and Piper isn't sure where Varian had gotten off to, but for her part she needed some fresh air.

Things have been akward between she and Varian for days now, even though their relationship seemed to finally be SOMEWHAT on the mend after their last serious talk. She knew that Eugene had opened up his big mouth about her feelings for the alchemist (needless to say Piper is planning her revenge and biding her time for when her fellow reformed thief least expects it), but she also knew that Varian's priorities were somewhere else entirely. Since he hadn't approached her about it yet she had to think she'd assumed correctly.

Did they need to talk? Absolutely. Piper just... wanted to take her mind off of everything for a while, at least until he was ready.

The gardens of the estate offered just such a relief, and seeing an opportunity, Piper had taken advantage of the excitement over events coming to a head to slip off. There's a pathway from the edge of the gardens leading up to a railed gazebo surrounded by flowers, wild and colorful. The view overlooking the enormous pond and lit fountain at the edge of the estate easily makes it the centerpiece, and it's here that Piper comes to rest. With her arms braced against the railing she looks out over the swans floating over the top of the otherwise glass like surface. The stars overhead sparkle back on the surface of the dark water like a mirror, and Piper's thoughts drift as she stares down into it and her own reflection. ]

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(ooc: If there's a delay in my replies soon it'll be because I'm wrapping up my shift at work and/or driving home!)

[ Varian isn't the only one who's noticed the change. Piper isn't embarrassed to admit to herself that her heart is racing a little to see the young man she'd fallen for coming back again for the first time in... months? He sounds like the "old" Varian again, and even though they both know that tomorrow reality will reassert itself again, that tomorrow they'll be back on the road, looking for a solution for the black rocks and helping Rapunzel find the Dark Kingdom...

Well, for right now, in the moment? It's like neither of their problems matter all that much, however untrue that may be. ]

Don't worry, goggles, I promise I won't laugh. [ It's the first time Piper's felt like herself in forever, too, and it shows with the familiar, easy going comfort that creeps into her tone when she drops her nickname for him. Even before the catacombs and the charmed necklace, she'd felt like she was walking on eggshells around him for a while. This is the most at ease she's felt with him since before she left Corona.

Slipping her hand into his, letting him take her waist, she rests her free hand on his shoulder for the moment, and she smiles again, encouraging and... happy. ]

(ooc: And gotcha! No worries!)

[It's a gift, to have a moment like this. A moment of peace; a moment to breathe. A moment where it's just the two of them being them, for the first time in... Ages.]

Well. You say that now...

[He grins, that goofy, bucktoothed grin he used to sport so often. It's the nickname that really makes the smile grow into that as he starts to lead her in a bright dance. He's stumbling, skipping steps, improvising, as soon as they start. He doesn't care, though.]

[ He's already making it difficult to keep her own word, not because of anything he's DONE, but the combination of the relief she feels to have such an easy air restored between them, and his own teasing reply. She manages to keep it subdued to a wild grin, though, and lets him guide them into the steps, picking up to follow his lead after.

How long they're at it, she's not sure, one song seems to merge into the next- or maybe it's still the same song? She can't say. Eventually though she does give in, laughing a little breathlessly at a spin that's a bit clumsy on both of their parts and results in her stepping into his space for balance, one arm around his neck and shoulders.

Now her heart is really racing, chest rising and falling, skin flushed with excitement. ]

[He doesn't fault her for laughing - wouldn't have in the first place, but by now he's laughing as well. And then she's close. Very close.]

Hey.

[His smile shifts to something softer, and he's strangely okay with the idea of them just staying like that - it wouldn't be awkward. Exhilarating, but not awkward at all.]

[ It does feel right, doesn't it? She thinks, even as her stomach flips, butterflies taking flight when their eyes meet and she sees him smile, and hears that tone. It's the cheesiest thing she's ever thought, but you know what...?

She's okay with that. ]

Hey...

[ Her smile turns soft too, not uncomfortable with the proximity, and not looking like she's going to pull away anytime soon. ]

This is...

[He clears his throat, softly. She's not moving away, so he thinks it's okay to say it.]

...Nice.

[ It feels like a pretty safe space, though you'd never know it by the way her heart keeps racing. ]

It is...

[It's a relief to hear that she agrees, even though the fact that she hasn't moved was a good sign things were okay.

It just... Is also a little scary, because how long can this last? Them being them again, him feeling okay again? It's so fragile, and Varian's well-aware of that fact.

He doesn't straighten up to move away, but he does cast his gaze off to the side, unsure of how he should proceed - how he wants to proceed.]

[Neither of them could have known, but it's the breaking of the eye contact that fractures the spell. When Varian's gaze shifts away from hers it makes the tension of the situation much more pronounced. Her own gaze has drifted elsewhere, and feeling awkward she takes a step back, leaning against the railing again, close, but just a little withdrawn again. It takes everything she has not to withdraw even harder. If it weren't for the fact that the ice had finally thawed between them she might have.

For a long moment Piper is quiet and the silence is unbearable, broken only by the chirping of the insects all around them, and the far away echos of the ball, the dim hum of chatter and music in the distance. All of that fades into dull background noise after a while though.

Meeting Varian had opened her up to things that she never really thought twice about. After watching her father struggle through the loneliness of a famous lifestyle, and seeing the residual pain he had gone through in the pursuit of love she'd honestly half written it off for herself. She didn't want to find herself surrounded by fake friends who only wanted a piece of her father's limelight. She didn't want to put herself out there trying to meet the right person just to find herself let down when the reality didn't measure up to her expectations, like his had.

But Varian was different, right from the first. He wasn't at all like anything she would have imagined for herself in a match, but he fit her perfectly anyway, just seemed to fill in all the little dips and crevices in her roughshod surface, until they formed one cohesive whole. And then she'd gone and messed it up by not telling him the truth, all because she was afraid of what would happen if he found out, what he'd think of her.

Well... he found out anyway, and it's taken all this time to mend things between them. There were times when she really thought it would be easier to just leave, to remove herself from the equation and go it on her own again rather than facing his disappointment and the gap that had grown between them, but... somehow, for once, she didn't want to run away. It was worth it to stay and fight for their friendship. He meant too much to her and she's not even really sure when that had happened. She'd do it all again, pain and all, to end up right here, right now. HER. The loner who'd always toughed it out by herself rather than opening herself up to more pain.

Isn't that crazy to think about?

For a moment her gaze drifts back in Varian's direction again. Revelations like that wouldn't do her any good if she couldn't even find the words to help him realize what he meant to her.]

[Piper let out a breath then, closing her eyes. It was embarrassing to think about putting her thoughts into words, but the more she focused on how he made her feel the stronger the urge became anyway, until it finally felt like she couldn't keep it in anymore. Maybe they'd just been spending too much time around Rapunzel's group, or maybe she'd finally cracked, but whatever the reason was Piper finally broke the silence hanging between them just before the breaking point. Her voice rang out, soft and tentative at first, but surprisingly sweet and clear.]

Living in my own world... didn't understand, that anything can happen... when you take a chance!

[Knowing Piper has been an adventure all its own, really - in part because of her amazing spirit, in part because of what they've gone through together, and... Also because of the way he cares for. He's been slowly putting the pieces of realizing that together, and it's now that it crystallizes. When she pulls away, he feels almost lonely - even though she's still right there.

This is new territory for Varian, all things considered, and... He doesn't hate that. He usually doesn't like what he can't explain, but this is a good kind of unknown. Piper has always seen the things in him that he's wanted others to see - even when he didn't quite see them himself. It's both scary and thrilling.

And when she sings in that gentle way, his heart - as cliche as it sounds - skips a beat. He's smiling more easily tonight than he has in months and months. And when he opens his mouth, he almost says so many things... Before he realizes that there's really just one thing he needs to say. Or rather, sing.]

I never believed in what I couldn't see. I never opened my heart... To all the possibilities.

[ It surprises her when Varian answers in kind. She'd half expected him to ask what she was doing. He's not the kind of guy who'd MOCK someone pouring their heart out, but she wouldn't have blamed him for being weirded out, if he had been.

But instead he responds by admitting his own romantic shortcomings, but in a hopeful note. Piper's heart skips a beat in answer. It brings a tentatively hopeful smile to her face. Now their voices meet, sharing the same thought. ]

I know that something has changed, never felt this way!

[ They really have been through it all together, haven't they? Or at least a heck of a lot. From the Meet Cute to adventures of all sorts, the lowest of lows, and now, maybe the highest of highs. And where most people might have run away screaming after learning about what sort of baggage she came with, Varian stuck around... He'd seen things in her that she'd always wished others would see, too. Amazing, really, how they seemed to fill those voids in one another. ]

[He can't help a small, warm smile when he notes her look of surprise. It's a little surprising to him that maybe she didn't expect this, even after all this time - and all they've been through together.]

And right here tonight, this could be the start of something new!

[That she's stood by him, no matter what... It means the world to him. No one has ever been so supportive of him, at least, not so obviously. It's what he's always wanted. Someone to believe in him.

And of course, he believes in Piper just as much. She's amazing - not someone he puts on a pedestal, though, the way he does with his father, or used to do with Rapunzel. They're lives are different, but there's something about her that he relates to, and as a result, their connection is strong.]

[Connecting with another person on this level was scary for her at first, but the more time she'd spent getting to know Varian the more she realized that he just had a way of putting her at ease. It didn't matter that their interests laid in opposite directions, in fact, if anything she'd always felt all the more drawn to him because of it. He was passionate about science, but he cared about people, too. That was where they met in the middle, at least to start.

Sure, his sense of humor could be a little corny at times, and there were moments when he forgot that the people around him weren't well versed in science and alchemy, but those things were just... so damn heartwarming and charming and him. Just like his compassion and unwavering bravery and loyalty. All the things that made up the whole, and he owned every bit of it, just so earnestly, unapologetically, confidentally Varian. She admired that about him, so much, the fact that he could be so confident in who he was, the things that made him him. Had she ever told him? She definitely should after this.]

It feels so right to be here with you! And now, looking in your eyes...

[Here Piper reaches for one of his hands again, taking it into her own.]

I feel in my heart...!

Edited 2020-01-30 07:20 (UTC)

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♫ •||• Taking the Plunge

You know Rapunzel and the others are going to end up spying on them from somewhere right? RIGHT? LOL

Oh, no doubt in my mind there!

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Do we still wanna do our cheesy High School Musical duet? LMAO

lol, absolutely! Piper was going to be first to sing, iirc?

1/2 - She was! Here is that reply super late. c8;;; TIME STOP FLYING SO FREAKING FAST.

2/2

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